U.S. adults favor AI fraud protection over financial autonomy, FIS survey finds

An AI assistant that stops a suspicious charge has more support than one given broad control over money. FIS’s 2026 Consumer Pulse Survey, released November 5, found 57% of surveyed U.S. adults comfortable with AI flagging or freezing suspicious charges without permission, while half wanted to approve every transaction an assistant makes.

The distinction is between allowing a defined action and handing over day-to-day decisions. Overall, 37% said they were ready to let an AI assistant manage their daily finances, while 49% were not. The rest were neutral.

FIS, a financial technology provider, conducted the online survey with research firm Kantar, which supplied the sample. It covered 2,000 U.S. adults from September 16–30, 2026. The results were unweighted and self-reported. They measure respondents’ stated comfort and experiences—not whether an AI assistant can safely carry out those tasks or prevent fraud.

Permission changes the task

The payment questions help explain where respondents drew the line. Paying a recurring bill that the customer had already approved attracted 55% comfort, close to the result for suspicious-charge protection. Sending money to another person or business attracted less support.

Comfort with other AI-assisted financial actions

• Sending money to another person or business: 47%.
• Opening a new savings account: 43%.
• Applying for a loan or credit card: 40%.

FIS interprets the findings as a reason for banks and credit unions to begin with protection, preserve customer control and demonstrate accountability before offering more autonomy.

Consumers are open to innovation on their terms: they want security, control and confidence that someone is accountable when something goes wrong. Banks that build AI around those expectations will earn the trust to do more.

Jim Johnson, co-president of Banking Solutions at FIS

Refunds and a human override

Asked to select their top three conditions for trusting an AI assistant with money, 58% chose a refund guarantee for mistakes. Access to a human who could review or override decisions followed at 56%.

The two safeguards address different points in a transaction: getting money back after a mistake and having a person able to intervene in a decision. Among respondents who were not ready to delegate money management, 70% said they wanted to remain in control of their own money.

Younger adults report readiness—and scam exposure

Willingness to delegate daily finances varied sharply by age. Millennials, defined as ages 30–45, were most ready at 61%, followed by Gen Z, ages 18–29, at 58%. Readiness fell to 33% among Gen X respondents, ages 46–61; 11% among those ages 62–69; and 3% among adults 70 and older.

The younger groups also reported the greatest exposure to AI impersonation scams, either personally or through someone they knew: 55% of Gen Z and 48% of millennials. Across all respondents, that combined figure was 35%. Personal targeting alone was reported by 22%; among that group, 58% said they received fake-voice phone calls.

Confidence in banks was a separate question. Forty-six percent of all respondents believed their bank could stop a deepfake scam, compared with 57% of Gen Z and 65% of millennials. Separately, 47% were confident their bank would return money lost to such a scam.